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British girl's message in a bottle makes it to Australia

AM - Saturday, 21 January , 2006 08:28:00

Reporter: Kerrie Ritchie

TONI HASSAN: When a young British girl put a message in a bottle last year and threw it into the ocean off the west coast of England she hoped she'd hear back from someone.

Last week, almost six months later, an envelope arrived at her kindergarten. But when staff opened it, they were shocked to find it had been sent by a 10-year-old boy named Bob, who had found the bottle 14,500 kilometres away in Perth.

Kerri Ritchie reports from London.

KERRI RITCHIE: In July last year, as part of a kindergarten project, four-year-old Alesha Johnson drew a picture of herself, and wrote next to it "Hello, if you get this message please write back".

She included the address of her kindergarten in the coastal town of Heysham and put the piece of paper inside a bottle. With the help of her mum she sealed it up and threw it in the Irish Sea at Morecambe Bay on England's north-west coast.

For six months Alesha Johnson didn't hear a thing, but then last week a letter was delivered to her kindergarten with her name on it.

Doreen Johnson is the manager of the kindergarten.

DOREEN JOHNSON: I thought it's rather strange that a child of four was getting a letter with just a first name and nobody… you know, and not a home address or anything.

KERRI RITCHIE: The letter was from a 10-year-old boy named Bob who lives in Perth. He'd found the bottle at Hillary's boatyard.

DOREEN JOHNSON: First I thought it was a joke. I thought perhaps one of the aunties or uncles had done it for her, you know, and popped it in. But of course, Mum was just as surprised as we were when we gave her the letter.

KERRI RITCHIE: Bob wrote that his dad had looked up where Heysham was on the internet, and he'd drawn a map showing the 14,500 kilometers the bottle had travelled.

Doreen Johnson says they were floored.

DOREEN JOHNSON: The furthest we thought it might go was the Isle of Mann which is just across from Morecambe, France at the furthest. We weren't dreaming of anything like this.

KERRI RITCHIE: Alesha's only four-years-old. Do you think she understands what's going on?

DOREEN JOHNSON: She understands a little bit because we've talked about like the sea going in and going out. We've been to watch the sea and everything. But she hasn't grasped the situation of what it's evolved to, and how far the bottle has gone. I mean, 9,000 miles doesn't mean anything to a child. It's the same distance as going from here to the ice cream shop.

KERRI RITCHIE: The people of Heysham are desperate to know more. But for the moment, this amazing true story has lost its leading man.

Bob didn't include an address. In the letter he said he was moving, but didn't say to where.

Doreen Johnson says they had a bit of trouble reading Bob's handwriting, but think his surname starts with the letter "F".

DOREEN JOHNSON: It would be nice to send him a reply, because obviously we can't reply to him because we've got nowhere to send it! Yeah, we would love to know more about it and how exactly he found it, you know, what was he doing, was he playing, was he fishing?

KERRI RITCHIE: Would you say that Bob's the talk of the town at the moment?

DOREEN JOHNSON: Well, he's the talk of our nursery, I don't know about the town, but he will be now it's been in the papers (laughs).

KERRI RITCHIE: You've had a lot of media interest, is that right?

DOREEN JOHNSON: That's right, yeah.

KERRI RITCHIE: So it would be nice for Bob to know what a celebrity he is?